Dear ,
In the past several weeks, disturbing reports and allegations have circulated concerning Red Onion State Prison, a maximum-security prison in rural Wise County, Virginia. The Department of Corrections has confirmed that six incarcerated people intentionally burned themselves. Red Onion has a history of complaints from incarcerated people about harsh conditions and poor treatment, including excessive solitary confinement.
The Virginia Interfaith Center has a long history of advocating for a more compassionate, restorative system of justice in Virginia -- including our state system of incarceration. From our advocacy work to end the death penalty to our call for the transfer of Lawrenceville Correctional Center from private to state administration, we have a demonstrated commitment to advancing justice and human dignity for all Virginians, with special concern for those who are incarcerated. For people of faith and goodwill, it is a profound spiritual obligation.
Earlier this year, a law was passed establishing a 15-member Corrections Oversight Committee that would work alongside the new Office of the Ombudsman to provide oversight for the Department of Corrections. The establishment of these two entities is intended to render greater transparency and accountability to the people of Virginia.
Given the serious nature of the events at Red Onion State Prison and the Virginia Interfaith Center's longstanding concern for the traumatic impact of extended solitary confinement (used at Red Onion and many Virginia prisons) we are calling on the Ombudsman to add a discussion of conditions at Red Onion to the agenda of the December 13, 2024, meeting of the Corrections Oversight Committee. In addition, we ask the Committee to authorize a study analyzing the connection between solitary confinement and self-harm.
Please join us in this call for humane justice! Click the button below to send an email to the Ombudsman asking that our concerns be addressed at the upcoming meeting. | 
